The Lost Colony (Lost Starship Series Book 4) (10 page)

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“No!” Brigadier O’Hara said. “It’s out of the question. Absolutely not.”

Maddox sat in her office in front of a synthi-wood desk. He had just finished explaining his encounter with the holoimage, the reaction of Dana Rich to ‘When will we see the New Hindu Kish again?’ and made his request to take
Victory
to the Xerxes System and rescue the professor.

“Excuse me, please,” O’Hara said in a softer tone. “I did not mean to shout at you.” She patted her gray hair and straightened her uniform. “You…you surprised me, Captain. Surely, you can see this is a trick to lure you and
Victory
to the Xerxes System.”

“That was my initial response as well, Ma’am. Dana’s reaction has changed my mind.”

“Well, it hasn’t changed mine.”

“If you could have seen her—”

“That doesn’t matter,” O’Hara said. “Your first suspicion was the correct one. Frankly, I’m surprised at you. Isn’t it obvious someone wishes to isolate
Victory
in a possibly hostile star system?”

“Star Watch sent a flotilla under Port Admiral Hayes. If anyone could have cleared out the ancient drones—”

“Yes, yes, old Admiral Hayes is as clever as they come,” O’Hara said. “But this is the Xerxes System, a notorious star system that everyone has avoided for decades. It’s legendary in its danger. Hayes has orders to proceed with extreme caution. It’s likely his flotilla is at the outer edge of the system, still collecting data on possible enemy star cruisers.”

“
Victory
can help him,” Maddox said.

“The Lord High Admiral doesn’t want
Victory
anywhere near any conflict for the near future. We must discover ways to duplicate the starship’s disrupter beam. So far, that has eluded our best people.”

“This could be critical,” Maddox said.

“In this, I can’t agree with you. Critical is having an alien Destroyer readying its beam to annihilate Earth. Critical is a New Men armada about to obliterate the last mobile Star Watch fleet. Freeing Ludendorff does not fall into that category.”

“I think you’re wrong, Ma’am. Ludendorff knows more than anyone except for Strand.”

“Exactly,” the Iron Lady said. “Ludendorff may be too dangerous to rescue. He may have sent the Ludendorff android in his place. Why did he use androids to kidnap you in Shanghai?”

“He said for secrecy’s sake.”

O’Hara made an uncharacteristically rude noise. “Captain, I believe whoever used the holoimage is playing on your overactive curiosity. That means we must do exactly the opposite of what they’re suggesting.”

“That seems far too timid,” Maddox said.

“Perhaps it does to the man who knowingly drinks drugged Mickeys.”

Maddox sat back, surprised at her vehemence. “Maybe we should ask the Lord High Admiral his opinion.”

“Oh, that is neatly done, sir,” O’Hara said. “You are trying to jump over my head in my presence. I do not appreciate that in the slightest.”

Maddox licked his lips. He had never seen O’Hara so worked up about an issue.

The Iron Lady stood, putting her fingertips on the desk, scrutinizing him coldly. Slowly, her shoulders deflated. She slumped back into her chair and swiveled around.

Maddox was more confused than ever.

A minute later, she turned back. Her eyes had become red-rimmed.

“Ma’am,” Maddox said with concern. “Are you well?”

“You’re a foolish young man, do you know that?”

Maddox did not know how to answer that.

“You run off on an outrageous quest, return with a magnificent starship, leave again and defeat an alien Destroyer against all reasonable odds. Some might say, ‘Let Captain Maddox go and do another mythic feat.’ I say, ‘The odds have become too long. One of these times, events will overpower your good luck and you’ll die.’ Do you want to die, Captain Maddox?”

“I do not,” he said.

“There’s your answer,” she said.

“But—”

“Someone has to shield you from your foolhardy desires to race off into danger. We will not go see the Lord High Admiral. This holoimage is a lethal trap meant to take you away forever. I know. I can…”

“You can what, Ma’am?”

“This may sound theatrical to you, Captain. But I can feel it in my heart that if you leave, you will never return. I…I do not wish that on my conscience.”

Maddox sat stock still, finally understanding the nature of her refusal. She did not want to risk him again. For some unknown reason, that tightened his throat. Even so, he forced out words:

“If the Xerxes System is that dangerous,” Maddox said, “Port Admiral Hayes needs reinforcements. Starship
Victory
is the perfect vessel for the strange system. You know that’s true, Ma’am. I feel the Lord High Admiral would agree with me. I think you realize he would too, which is why you don’t want to ask him.”

“I realize no such thing,” O’Hara said.

“We can’t afford to have such a dangerous star system so near Earth,” Maddox said. “It’s eighty-three light-years in eleven jumps using the Laumer-Points.”

“I’m well aware of the distance, Captain.”

“Ma’am, I’m touched for you concern regarding me. I appreciate it.”

“I don’t believe that. Therefore, I ask you to prove me wrong by listening to me. What is the old saying? Actions speak louder than words.”

“I realize that. But Ludendorff has proved critical time and again. We desperately need the man’s knowledge. I know you know that. He has the location of the Throne World. That in itself is worth the risk.”

The brigadier sat quietly, ingesting the news, finally saying, “That is important. Very well, we can send someone else to fetch him.”

“There is no one else who will succeed in this but me and Starship
Victory
.”

The Iron Lady put both hands on the desk. The redness in her eyes had departed. “You think this is strictly emotional on my part. I assure you that isn’t so. I have studied the signs and listened carefully to your tale. I think a Builder lies behind this. You have sparked their interest in you.”

“Ma’am, that’s far too fanciful.”

“No,” O’Hara said. “I have read Dr. Rich’s report, the one she is giving now. I agree with her that the signs down in the Mid-Atlantic show the Builders walked the Earth in our early history. The pyramids are the last example of their presence. Perhaps more interestingly, the lost city of Atlantis is their fallen abode.”

“I’m unfamiliar with the topic.”

O’Hara shook her head. “Captain, this is a dangerous moment in human history. It could be a fulcrum point. Pressure applied at the wrong spot could tip the balance the wrong way. These past few years we have survived amazing shocks. The New Men appeared out of the Beyond, smashing our fleets and conquering our planets. You found the great antidote—an ancient alien starship of unique technologies. This starship you used with utmost skill, allowing Admiral Fletcher to save half of Fifth Fleet while smashing the New Men’s invasion armada. After that, Star Watch had a fighting chance against the demoralizing and frightening foe, superior to us in every way. But no, another shock appeared, the alien Destroyer. It burned to the bedrock every planet in the New Arabia System, destroying the heart of the Wahhabi Caliphate and annihilating the bulk of their war fleet. The Destroyer swept away an easy quarter of humanity’s fighting ships—meaning we were going to have a much harder time attacking the New Men. Fortunately, the Windsor League and others have joined us in a grand crusade against the enemy. It’s still possible we can defeat the mysterious supermen hiding in the Beyond. Knowing the location of the Throne World…I agree that is vital to our war effort, but other Intelligence operatives can hurry to the Xerxes System and inform Hayes.”

“That’s quite the speech, Ma’am.”

“I’m not finished,” she said. “There is one deadly ingredient in all this that frightens me terribly: Strand. The ancient Methuselah Man is deceptive beyond anything I’ve experienced. He is ultimately devious, and I believe you frighten him. Now, why is that, Captain?”

Maddox said nothing, not sure where she was taking this.

“You have thwarted Strand several times, a feat almost beyond measure. We have discovered that
he
created the Methuselah People and
he
created the New Men. Why has Strand done these things?”

“We know why, Ma’am.”

“I don’t agree. I think we
know
what he wants us to believe.”

“No. I think we uncovered the truth. Strand did these things because he believes there are alien species out there—the Swarm in particular—that could annihilate humanity. The Methuselah People and the New Men were his way of improving the species so we could face the terrible enemy.”

“Strand is evil, Captain. I know because he sent the alien Destroyer against Earth. That was a monstrous crime. He will do anything he can to win, not to save humanity.”

“Why then?”

“
That
is the question we need to solve. We have a breathing space. The New Men, and Strand with them—whether in conjunction or not I don’t think anyone on our side knows. In any case, they used up their sleeper cells on Earth. For the first time, we are united, without Strand’s agents working against us. Humanity must close its fist, as the saying goes, and strike hammer blows against the right target. We must no longer slap our enemies in the face with an open hand, merely stinging them to greater action.”

“So far, I agree with your analysis.”

“When we strike the decisive blow, we will need
Victory
. Even better, would be ten
Victorys
and even better than that would be one hundred.”

“There’s no question about that,” Maddox said.

“The Commonwealth and Windsor League have superior industrial might compared to the New Men. We must use that, out-producing our genetic enemy. Yet would it not be even better to out-produce them with superior ships?”

“It would indeed.”

“That is why we must keep
Victory
in Earth orbit as we laboriously attempt to reverse engineer the ancient weapon systems. If I had my way, we would tear the starship apart piece by piece. The survival of human existence might well depend on it.”

“I can’t agree to that, Ma’am.”

“I know you can’t. You’re too invested in
Victory
, almost as if you think it’s a living thing.”

“It is a living thing,” Maddox said.

“Driving Force Galyan is a machine, nothing more.”

“I respectfully disagree. But that aside, if you know my thoughts, why say all this to me?”

O’Hara sighed. “I’ve begun to understand you better, young man. You yearn to race into danger with
Victory
. It’s exciting, challenging and rewards your pride by having others heap accolades upon you for a job well done.”

“That is not why I’ve done those things, Ma’am.”

“It’s possible you don’t consciously realize it, but it’s true nonetheless.”

Instead of becoming angry, Maddox grew thoughtful. “Suppose you’re right about me. What difference does that make to rescuing Ludendorff? Don’t we owe it to the man to get him back?”

“Not necessarily,” O’Hara said, “not if the cost is too high.”

Maddox grew silent.

“This is bigger than emotive responses,” the Iron Lady told him. “Until now, I have agreed with your desperate actions. Our plight was too awful for anything else. Now—”

Maddox sat forward sharply. “Do you watch football, Ma’am?”

“I do not. It is a deplorable sport, far too violent to no reasonable purpose.”

“It engages the emotions, certainly, and it’s filled with strategy.”

“Violent strategies that force young men into far too violent of collisions,” O’Hara said.

“That may well be,” Maddox said. “However, it offers us a fitting example. Football games are intense contests that often rise and fall due to momentum. Consider the situation where a team is losing and becomes desperate. The coach sends in a few trick plays along with possible long bomb maneuvers. A few of the plays work, the team scores and the momentum of the game shifts their way. Soon, the formerly losing team is winning. Now, however, time is running out and the coach wishes to hang onto his lead. What does he do? He plays preventive defense and makes tepid offensive calls. The other team takes heart and attempts a few trick plays of their own. All of a sudden, the momentum shifts again, and the preventive coach causes his team to lose the game.”

“Are you suggesting I’m saying we play preventive defense?” O’Hara asked.

“I’m afraid I am, Ma’am. We have gotten where we are by being bold, not by playing it safe.”

“There is a time to protect our winnings, Captain.”

“Undoubtedly,” Maddox said. “This is not one of them, though. We have two enemies, at least. One of them is the New Men. We have sent Admiral Fletcher to liberate the captured planets of “C” Quadrant. At the same time, we have united regular humanity and begun massed production of warships. That is the correct strategy. You’ve pointed out a possibly more dangerous foe, Strand. What is the antidote to him? More knowledge. Professor Ludendorff can give us that knowledge. Therefore, we must rescue him at all costs. Strand knows this, and is likely doing everything in his power to stop us. That is why I must take
Victory
to the Xerxes System and free Ludendorff from the Builder traps.”